'Sacrifice yourself, not India's interests': Joshi tells Govt.

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Last Updated: Wed, Dec 05, 2012 11:00 hrs

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Murli Manohar Joshi on Wednesday poked fun at the Congress-led UPA Government's justification that FDI in retail is optional, and said the national interests should not be sacrificed.

"If FDI is good for the country, then why is it optional for states? Aap ki gardanein aap katwaye, desk ki gardan maat katiye," he said.

Joshi said the FDI move was fast tracked after P. Chidambaram became the country's Finance Minister.

"Till Pranab Babu who is now the honourable President was the Finance Minister, there was no movement on FDI. The FDI policy was fast-tracked after Chidambaram became the Finance Minister," he added.

Asserting that the move to allow FDI in retail would ruin the domestic market, Joshi said the government must have held talks with the farmers and small retailers.

Joshi said the government did not consult all stakeholders before taking a final call on FDI in retail.

"The foreign retailers are not interested in serving India, but they are interested in making money. Instead of backing big retailers, the government must think about the farmers interests," said Joshi.

"Foreign companies will indulge in predatory pricing. They will destroy everything local and reap profits later. PepsiCo has a lot of land but that hasn't benefitted farmers," he added. (ANI)